We had someone die on one of our trails yesterday

[indysteel]

You're welcome Trust me - I get anxious too, so I GET IT. But I still love it, and I still go out and push myself to do even better every time I ride. My anxiety about all of the rocks at Nationals actually helped me to ride some rocky sections of a race course BETTER yesterday than I might have previously. I still dabbed in places where I was nervous, but I had a terrific race, and LOVED being out there. That's what it is about.

Indy - do you have an MTB group local to you? Are there any women local who ride A LOT and would be willing to take yo out with them for a ride? I do that often here - I love to teach and share my passion for riding in the woods with others. I've also been on the receiving end of some great tips from other women. It's a great way to get out there!

SheFly

The irony is that every time I ride, I actually do pretty well. My husband just shakes his head at me because my perception of how I'm riding and the reality of how I ride are vastly different. I sort of did the same thing when I started road biking. After I got strong enough to ride the worst of our hills and/or ride long distances, I would still put myself down when it came to my abilities.

But to answer your question, we do have a relatively local "club," but I'm not terribly tapped into it, and I've sort of sensed that it operates more as an advocacy group (especially as it relates to trail building, maintenance and local MTB promotion) than as a club through which riders can meet and ride together. To best of my knowledge, there are no club sponsored rides other than the "big" event rides and local races.

I've reached out a time or two to the husband and wife who put on our local women's skills clinic for the name of someone local who might be interested in private lessons. I heard nothing from the wife and was vaguely directed elsewhere by the husband (who is somebody I know reasonably well as he was my fitter for my road bike and he helped me design and build my Moots roadie). I don't want to malign them because I mostly assumed at the time that they were pretty busy, but I will admit that I was a bit surprised that they weren't more eager to hook me up with someone. The husband has since left the shop where he worked, but I don't know whether he's in a better position now to instruct me himself. I haven't seen or talked to him in some time.

Beyond that, there's a Meetup.com women's group. From what I can tell, a small group of beginning/intermediate riders get together at the park where I ride. Admittedly, I'm torn about this. I feel sort of self-conscious saying this because I'm otherwise pretty independent from my husband and he from me, but riding is one of the things we mostly do together. We go mtbing infrequently enough as it is that I'd rather ride with him when I do go out. While we have a few mutual mtb friends, it's usually just the two of us. So, I haven't done a particularly good job of reaching out to other riders. But I will acknowledge that I'm likely hampering my own development as a mtber because of it. Maybe it's time to rethink that.

Thanks for giving me some food for thought.

[Catrin]

Thanks for the pep-talk, SheFly. I needed to hear that. This thread has reinforced for me that I should go to another clinic or otherwise get some more instruction. I feel like I'm doing relatively well as a new-ish rider, but I'm letting some anxiety get the better of me. Having some additional instruction will hopefully reinforce what I think I'm already doing pretty well, and help me correct some of the things that I'm not. Because I really do love riding in the woods.

Indy - if it helps - I really enjoyed riding with you last year when we hit Green Valley. Your confidence and strength riding was very encouraging to me!

I wish I COULD risk trying it again, but I can't risk another neck injury. That doesn't mean that I can't encourage others and volunteer at events

[indysteel]

Indy - if it helps - I really enjoyed riding with you last year when we hit Green Valley. Your confidence and strength riding was very encouraging to me!

I wish I COULD risk trying it again, but I can't risk another neck injury. That doesn't mean that I can't encourage others and volunteer at events

Thanks; I appreciate your compliment. I was having a good day that day! I'm sorry you've had to stop, although I totally understand your reasoning.

[Catrin]

Thank; I appreciate your compliment. I was having a good day that day! I'm sorry you've had to stop, although I totally understand your reasoning.

That WAS a great day, wasn't it? So what if I crashed at the end of it, but I consider it my last good mountain bike ride I finally made outside Pine Loop, Limekiln, and the NT Loop, even if it was only once. I would totally try it again someday if it weren't for the potential consequences. It helps that I no longer have a mountain bike, so I can't go on a whim.

If we had easier trails on which to ride I would have kept the bike and done what some others here do. Fire trails and other less technical terrain probably would have been fine for me, but I've not been able to even road ride without symptoms since then. I just choose to consider it a reminder by my body that I've limitations and to focus on what doesn't hurt. I DO have hopes of being able to ride more after I complete my shoulder/neck treatments

[Catrin]

You have an amazing memory Indy! That is exactly what happened. It was just a freakish fall- all about how I fell rather than the speed of the fall. That is life and I am thankful that I've been able to find other things. It DOES feel at times that the price I've paid for that crash has been pretty high but I prefer to focus on what I can do. No sense focusing on what I can't change.

I will PM you the contact info on my Chiro in case you decide to go that way. He is in Carmel on Tues/Thurs.

[mumbles]

I fell a lot when I started riding at 52. A lot of my falls were because I got scared and tried to stop in the middle of something. Had to learn to let the bike roll through it. Some falls were just sudden otb's. Broke my wrist when my bike slipped in the mud. I find the 29er to be much more stable and at 57 I ride better and take less risks, falls are rare. If I could ride as fast as the young guys around here do, I would be in bad shape after a fall. Slower speed crashes aren't so bad. Road bikes are higher speed and you fall on concrete, that scares me more.
Sad about the guy that went off the bridge. Actually I heard he totally missed the bridge and was no doubt flying at full speed, he landed wrong and broke his neck. I think when death wants to take you, it doesn't matter where you are or what you are doing, it will find a way. Better to die doing what you love than some of the other available options.